As many of you already know, Apogee Beach is a luxury beachfront condo development which will be located in Hallandale Beach. Pre-construction sales recently began and 40% of the total 49 units at Apogee Beach have already been sold. The developer behind the project is The Related Group which of course also developed Apogee South Beach, one of South Florida’s most exclusive condo developments. Apogee South Beach set the bar extremely high when it comes to quality and attention to detail. Name recognition and reputation go a long way in this business and perhaps there’s no better name for a new condo development to be associated with than “Apogee”.
After reviewing the renderings for Apogee Beach, however, I could not help but think that it bears an uncanny resemblance to two Miami condo developments – 50 Biscayne and Icon Brickell. The lobby for Apogee Beach appears to be a clone of the lobby at 50 Biscayne while the kitchen and bathroom are glaringly similar to those at Icon Brickell. What do you all think?
Apogee Beach rendering
50 Biscayne’s lobby
50 Biscayne’s lobby
Apogee Beach rendering
Icon Brickell’s bathroom
Apogee Beach rendering
Icon Brickell’s kitchen
Apogee South Beach Penthouse Sells For $11.5M
Penthouse A at Apogee South Beach closed yesterday for $11.5M. The transaction is the highest priced condo sale in Miami Dade County in 2011. Furthermore, it also is the fifth highest condo resale in Miami-Dade history. The penthouse has 6,853 square feet of interior, over 11,000 square feet of terrace, a private rooftop pool, a summer kitchen and offers 360-degree views of the Atlantic Ocean, Biscayne Bay and the city. The buyer was an undisclosed person from Europe.
2011 may turn out to be a very hot year for the luxury real estate market in Miami. There should be a lot of activity in the coming months, particularly in the luxury homes market. Currently, there are five waterfront homes priced over $9M that are under contract with the highest being a 15,008 square foot home listed for $32M. I’ll be sure to keep an eye on these properties and report back once they close. In the meantime, enjoy the following pictures of Penthouse A at Apogee South Beach.
Ten Highest Closed Sales Within the Past Six Months in Miami-Dade County
The following are the 10 highest luxury condo sales that have closed in Miami-Dade County within the past six months:
The Setai South Beach – Penthouse B – 4 bedroom/4 bath (6,208 square feet) – This condo sold for $15M, or $2,416 per square foot, on June 4, 2010. It was listed for $19,999,999.
Santa Maria – Unit 4901 – 3 bedroom/5 bath (10,000 square feet) – This condo sold for $11M, or $1,100 per square foot, on May 21, 2010. It was listed for $12.9M.
Fontaintebleau II – Penthouse NO – 5 bedroom/5 bath (4,500 square feet) – This condo sold for $9M, or $2,000 per square foot, on May 14, 2010. It was listed for $9.8M.
One Bal Harbour – Penthouse 2108 – 4 bedroom/4.5 bath (5,262 square feet) – This condo sold for $8.7M, or 1,653 per square foot, on May 25, 2010. It was listed for $12M.
Villa del Mare – Unit 7223 – 4 bedroom/5 bath/2 half bath (6,820 square feet) – This condo sold for $6.75M, or $990 per square foot, on March 1, 2010. It was listed for $8M.
Apogee South Beach – Unit 904 – 4 bedroom/4.5 bath (4,154 square feet) – This condo sold for $6.55M, or $1,577 per square foot, on May 21, 2010. It was listed for $6.85M.
Apogee South Beach – Unit 1801 – 4 bedroom/3 bath (4,154 square feet) – This condo sold for $5.9M, or $1,420 per square foot, on April 16, 2010. It was listed for $6,795,000.
Apogee South Beach – Unit 604 – 4 bedroom/3.5 bath (4,154 square feet) – This condo sold for $5.8M, or $1,396 per square foot, on June 18, 2010. It was listed for $6.25M.
Apogee South Beach – Unit 704 – 4 bedroom/3.5 bath (4,154 square feet) – This condo sold for $5.3M, or $1,276 per square foot, on March 18, 2010. It was listed for $5.8M.
Ocean Tower One – Unit 501 – 4 bedroom/5.5 bath (5,403 square feet) – This condo sold for $5.2M, or $962 per square foot, on June 3, 2010. It was listed for $6.25M.
Developer Blowout at The Plaza on Brickell
In this video segment, we discuss the developer blowout sale at The Plaza on Brickell that was announced Thursday afternoon. I received word just 24 hours later that 16 units had already been placed under contract. This is now the best deal in Brickell but availability won’t last long. Later in the video, we also discuss the uptick in luxury condo sales in 2010. We end the show with a picture slideshow of Penthouse A at Apogee South Beach which came onto the market last month with an asking price of $16M.
South of Fifth – Miami Beach’s Ultra-Luxury Neighborhood
The video above is meant for the non-local buyer who may not be familiar with the various neighborhoods throughout South Florida. South of Fifth, also known as SoFi, is a neighborhood that encompasses the five southern most blocks of South Beach (and therefore Miami Beach). Once regarded as one of the most dangerous neighborhoods in South Florida, South of Fifth is now considered to be one of the safest and most luxurious for condo living. The revitalization of the area within the past two decades has been remarkable, attributed mainly to visionary Thomas Kramer.
One of the main attractions for South of Fifth condos is South Pointe Park which reopened in March 2009 after undergoing a $22M renovation. The neighborhood also has world-renowned restaurants Joe’s Stone Crab and Prime 112 as well as local favorites Devito South Beach, Smith & Wollensky and China Grill. South of Fifth is reputed for being a clean, quiet, exclusive neighborhood away from the congestion of South Beach but within walking distance to all else that South Beach has to offer. The beach at the southernmost point of Miami Beach, in my opinion, is also one of the most beautiful beaches in South Florida.
Below, you will find a list of the South of Fifth condo buildings that were featured in the video. Click on each link to view the condos currently available for sale.
Below, you will find a video tour of unit 2001 at Apogee. Apogee is located at 800 South Pointe Drive in the South of Fifth neighborhood of South Beach. Apogee is considered to be one of the finest condo buildings in all of South Florida. Unit 2001 is a 4 bedroom + media room/3.5 bath condo with 4,154 square feet of interior and 2,441 square feet of terrace. The asking price of this 20th floor corner unit is $7.75M, or $1866 per square foot. Unit 2004, a 4 bedroom of the same size located on the opposite corner, closed in July 2008 for $7.3M, or $1757 per square foot. It was sold decorator ready just as unit 2001 is being sold. Contact us at 305-428-3860 if you have any questions or would like to visit unit 2001 in person.
New Miami Condos – Closing Rates for February 2008
This month, I decided to make two separate graphs to show the percentage of total units that each development has closed since closings began. The first graph, found immediately below, reveals the closing rates for Miami condos which had their first closing prior to November 1 2007. The condo developments are also now ordered according to when closings began, with the first to the left.
Below you will find the date that each condo development in the graph above began closings:
Not much has changed with this group of condos since the last update was provided in January. Ten Museum Park and Latitude on the River inched up about 2-3 percentage points. Star Lofts on the Bay remained the exact same and Onyx on the Bay was able to close one additional condo. The Loft Downtown 2 moved up a little over 5 percentage points and 50 Biscayne moved up almost 7 percentage points. A few different sources have told me that there have been about 200 defaulted condos at 50 Biscayne. This is in line with the 239 condos that are currently unaccounted for according to public records. Several people have left comments here stating that the developer has chosen to lease many of the defaulted condos and ride out the storm rather than sell to a bulk buyer. I’m sure other developers will follow suit, which will decrease the expected inventory levels for a few years.
Below you will find the date that each condo development in the graph above began closings:
The graph above includes a group of condos which began closings within the past three months. I was surprised to see that 1800 Club has fared the best, although it should be noted that it did begin closings first amongst this group. Brickell on the River 2 has made much progress since the end of January when closed condos represented about 4 1/2 percent. Quantum on the Bay has done well considering that it has only received a TCO on the first of its two towers. Driving by a few times within the last couple of weeks, I did notice more lights on at night than one would expect from a condo development that just started closings about a month and a half ago. Same goes with 1800 Club. With a closing rate of about 20 percent, Apogee South Beach is off to a good start. Prices there start at about $2.5M. Plaza on Brickell has also only received a TCO on the first of its two towers. We should see much improvement from most of the condo buildings in the above group within the next month or two.
You may have noticed that One Bal Harbour and Midtown 2 are not found in this month’s update. I chose not to include One Bal Harbour because the Regent condo-hotel units have now begun closings and I did not want to intermingle the two. I do know, however, that WCI Communities has been quite successful in closing units at One Bal Harbour. They’ve closed around 150-155 condos out of a total of 185. I also know that several have been reassigned and are currently under contract. I expect WCI to have only a couple developer units left at One Bal Harbour by the end of March.
I didn’t include 2 Midtown because I noticed that a bunch of deeds have been re-recorded there. It would have taken me forever to sort through that mess. The following was written along the left-hand side of the re-recorded deeds: “This deed is being re-recorded to correct vesting on title”.
Disclaimer: The above closing rate information was derived from public County records. There can be a 2-3 week delay from the time that a closing occurs and the time that the closing gets recorded.
Apogee South Beach – Now That’s a Master Bathroom!!!
Yesterday morning, I had the opportunity to visit a few condo units at Apogee South Beach located at 800 South Pointe Drive in South Beach. The word “sensational” doesn’t even come close to fully encompassing the quality that has gone into this condo development. Apogee South Beach is in a league of its own, with quality that is unmatched by any condo development in South Florida.
The following are a few shots of the master bathroom that I took yesterday inside one of the two condos at Apogee South Beach. Trust me, the kitchens are equally as impressive, if not more so. I’ll likely share the photos of the kitchen at Apogee with everyone in a future post.
There’s Never Been a Better Time to Throw a Party
Three years ago, it seemed like every week that there would be a party thrown to commemorate the launch of sales for a new pre-construction condominium project. The parties were grand – open bar, all-you-can-eat buffets, firework shows, flamingos walking around, synchronized swimmers, half-naked cocktail servers, the finest wines, talking parrots – you name it and it was there.
Nowadays, it seems like hardly any developers want to throw a party and I personally think that this is the best time to throw a party. Three years ago, parties were thrown because it was expected (even though people would have signed contracts regardless if there was a party or not). These people signed contracts based on developer reputation, architectural renderings, and merely because the market was hot! It’s no secret that the market has cooled considerably since that time.
Why not stand behind your development and launch a party to show the public that you’re delivering a great product? Get potential buyers inside the building and let them reminisce about the party and how great your building is to other potential buyers. In my eyes, it sends a strong message to the consumer that you feel that you are delivering a great development to the public and that you are confident that they will feel the same way.
Even the best condo developments will have at least a 15% default rate in this market. Once this becomes a reality, why not hold a weekly open house to showcase your building and available units to the general public? I’ll even personally do it for you if you don’t have anyone on staff to do it.
The Related Group of Florida is the only developer that I know of that is throwing grand-opening parties for their developments. As I said before, this shows me that they stand behind their product. In fact, their latest development, Apogee South Beach, is having a grand-opening party on December 19. Unfortunately, I won’t be in town to catch the party, but the fact that they are having one shows me that they are confident that they will be delivering a spectacular product.
Apogee South Beach: Ultra-Luxury Living at its Finest – Prices & Availability
The video above is of the construction progress at Apogee South Beach located in the neighborhood of South Beach known as South of Fifth. South of Fifth has become the most luxurious neighborhood in South Beach. Apogee is situated at the southern tip of South Beach, along South Pointe Drive at 800 South Pointe Drive. As you can see above, Apogee is almost complete. Closings for condo units at Apogee are scheduled to begin in September 2007. Apogee rises 22 stories high with only 67 private residences (4 units per floor).
Apogee South Beach will be THE ultra-luxury condo building of South Beach. Celebrities from all over have purchased residences at Apogee. When sales began at Apogee prices started at $3M. The list below will show you information pertaining to the resale units that are currently available at Apogee. Original buyers were given the option of modifying the floor plan of their residence which means that some of these units may be modified versions of the original floor plan. Apogee is known for having very large and spacious residences with top-of-the-line appliances and fixtures.
“A” Residence:
4,154 Sq Ft a/c
2,441 Sq Ft terrace
Line “04”, West corner with N, S, & W exposures
Unit 704 – $7.6M ($1,829/SF) 3BR
Unit 1104 – $7.75M ($1,866/SF) 4BR
Unit 1504 – $7.75M ($1,866/SF) 3BR
Unit 1704 – $8.2M ($1,974/SF) 4BR
Line “01”, East corner with N, S, & E exposures
Unit 901 – $5.2M ($1,252/SF) 4BR
Unit 1401 – $6.5M ($1,565/SF) 3BR
“B” Residence:
3,100 Sq Ft a/c
1,042 Sq Ft terrace
Unit 703 – $4M ($1,290/SF)
Unit 902 – $4.5M ($1,452/SF)
Unit 1203 – $4.349M ($1,403/SF)
Unit 1402 – $4.449M ($1,435/SF)
Unit 1603 – $4.9M ($1,580/SF)
Unit 1903 – $5.2M ($1,677/SF)
Take a look at level of quality that will go into the luxurious residences at Apogee South Beach:
